Squier, E. G. (Ephraim George), 1821-1888
Variant namesBiographical notes:
Ephraim George Squier (1821-1888) and Dr. Edwin Hamilton Davis (1811-1888) of Chillicothe, Ohio were antiquarian authors who became authorities in the field of Indian antiquities. Mr. Squier was editor of the Scioto Gazette in Ohio when he began investigating the moundbuilders of the Scioto Valley under the tutelage of Dr. Davis, an Ohio physician who wrote for several historical and medical journals. Squier was later appointed Charge d'affaires to Guatemala and other Central American states and negotiated the preliminary agreements which led to the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty in 1850.
From the description of Papers, 1847-1848. (American Antiquarian Society). WorldCat record id: 218551737
Squier was an author and diplomat, secretary, 1853, of the Honduras Interoceanic Railway.
From the description of Letter : New York, to J.W. Doughty, 1870 Oct. 15. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 30806827
American archaeologist, diplomat and businessman.
From the description of Letter to Fitz-Greene Halleck [manuscript], 1842 March 18. (University of Virginia). WorldCat record id: 647923956
Archeologist, diplomat, and businessman.
From the description of The papers of Ephraim George Squier, 1841-1848. (University of California, Berkeley). WorldCat record id: 214955710
Squier was a journalist, diplomat, and archaeologist. He edited newspapers in New York and Ohio, and wrote books on Native American antiquities and the Civil War. Squier negotiated a treaty for an interoceanic canal across Nicaragua, and was involved in plans to build a railroad across Honduras. About 1860 he became chief editor for Frank Leslie's Publishing House. He married Miriam Florence Follin, who later married Frank Leslie.
From the description of Papers, 1838-1905. (Indiana Historical Society Library). WorldCat record id: 33804797
Journalist, diplomat, and archaeologist, Squier was born in Bethlehem, N.Y. He edited various newspapers in New York, Connecticut, and Ohio from 1842 to 1846. He collaborated with Edwin H. Davis studying the remains of Mound Builders in Ohio. The result of their research appeared in the first publication of the Smithsonian Institution. He was commissioner to Peru (1863-1865) and was successful in settling financial claims between the two countries. He later returned to his work with the publishing house of Frank Leslie. (DAB)
From the guide to the Claims Brought Before the United States and Peru Mixed Claims Commission, 1863-1864, (Harvard Law School Library, Harvard University)
Diplomat, journalist and archeologist.
From the description of Papers, 1847-1894 (bulk 1849-1859). (New York University, Group Batchload). WorldCat record id: 58778904
Ephraim George Squier (1821-1888), a journalist, archaeologist and diplomat, was an authority on Central America. He held a number of consular and diplomatic posts in Latin America.
From the description of Letter : New York to Hon. J. M. Mason, 1853 February 19. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 122640072
Ephraim G. Squier, an archaeologist, author and diplomat, went to Central America in 1849 as chargé d'affaires, and returned in 1853 to make surveys for the Honduras Interoceanic Railway. He served as U.S. commissioner to Peru (1863-65) and as consul general of Honduras in New York in 1868. Squier wrote many books on Central and South America.
From the description of Papers of E. G. Squier, 1852-1858. (Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens). WorldCat record id: 122288696
Archeologist and diplomat.
From the description of Papers, ca. 1845-1870. (Rhinelander District Library). WorldCat record id: 18727444
Ephraim Squier was a diplomat, archaeologist, traveler and author.
From the description of Letter to "Dear Gov." and portrait of Ephraim Squier. 1866. (Haverford College Library). WorldCat record id: 173972923
Archaeologist, diplomat, and businessman.
From the description of Papers of E. G. Squier. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 71132858
Journalist, diplomat, and archaeologist, Squier was born in Bethlehem, N.Y. He edited various newspapers in New York, Connecticut, and Ohio from 1842 to 1846. He collaborated with Edwin H. Davis studying the remains of Mound Builders in Ohio. The result of their research appeared in the first publication of the Smithsonian Institution. He was commissioner to Peru (1863-1865) and was successful in settling financial claims between the two countries. He later returned to his work with the publishing house of Frank Leslie.(DAB)
From the description of Claims brought before the United States and Peru Mixed Claims Commission, 1863-1864. (Harvard Law School Library). WorldCat record id: 235991916
Archaeologist, diplomat, author, editor, and businessman.
From the description of E.G. Squier papers, 1841-1888 (bulk 1846-1874). (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 70981199
Archaeologist, diplomat, and author.
An investigator of antiquities in the Mississippi Valley and the state of New York, Squier subsequently was appointed to various diplomatic posts in Central and South America, regions which also became the subject of his archaeological and historical research and writing.
From the description of Letter : New York, [N.Y.], to [John Russell] Bartlett, 1870 Dec. 11. (Newberry Library). WorldCat record id: 40222331
Biographical Note
From the guide to the E. G. Squier Papers, 1841-1888, (bulk 1846-1874), (Manuscript Division Library of Congress)
Ephraim Squier (1821-1886) is well known in American anthropology. The son of Joel Squier (1798-1891), a Methodist minister, and Katherine Kilmer Squier (1797-1833), Ephraim was born in Bethlehem, New York. Because of his father's itinerant preaching and sparse income, Squier had little opportunity to receive a formal education and thus attended school intermittently. At his father's behest, he initially began his career as a teacher. Realizing his disdain for pedagogy, Squier then trained to be a civil engineer. This career, however, did not prove to be lucrative. Having an interest in poetry, Squier became increasingly engaged in writing and was eventually drawn to journalism. In the early 1840's, he edited and published several unsuccessful magazines and journals, such as the short-lived Poet's Magazine . He then edited and wrote for The New York State Mechanic, publishing articles on prison reform. His gradual involvement in politics and social issues led to a position in 1843 as co-editor of the Hartford Journal, for which he wrote articles in support of the Whig party. In 1845, he took a job in Chillicothe, Ohio, as editor of the Scioto Gazette, a publication that also had Whig inclinations.
Despite his productive writing career, Squier is best known for his influence in the founding of American archaeology, and for his contribution to ethnology. It was during his time as editor of the Gazette that Squier became interested in the remnants of Mississippian culture in Ohio. Although he continued to engage in politics, as evidenced by his appointment in 1846 as House Clerk to the Ohio House of Representatives, the lure of ancient cultures and their material remains still intrigued him. He proved to be as prolific a writer of anthropology as he was as a journalist. His seminal publications are Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley (1848), which he wrote with Edwin Hamilton Davis (1811-1888), and Aboriginal Monuments of the State of New-York (1849). Both volumes were based on extensive survey work conducted by Davis and Squier in Ohio and Squier himself in New York, and published by the Smithsonian Institution. As serious and ambitious anthropological works, the volumes contain cross-cultural analogies and provide detailed maps of survey work of mounds and earthworks, thus yielding a great deal of insight into the prehistory of New York and the Ohio Valley.
In 1849, Squier was offered a diplomatic position in Nicaragua. During his one-year tenure, he negotiated a treaty with Nicaragua for the construction of an American canal. Despite his diplomatic responsibilities, he was still able to find time to explore local archaeological sites, and to investigate and write on anthropological topics. Thus, his focus shifted to the archaeology of Central America. One publication that he wrote during this period was The Serpent Symbol and the Reciprocal Principles of Nature (1851). In 1852 he then published Nicaragua: Its People, Scenery, Monuments and the Proposed Inter-Oceanic Canal, which addresses both archaeological and ethnohistorical questions.
In addition to Nicaragua, Squier acquired other diplomatic positions in Central America in order to have access to archaeological sites, although he also used his station to promote development in the region. In 1853, he put forth the idea of building a railroad across part of Nicaragua and Honduras. However, the Honduras Interoceanic Railway Project never reached fruition. In the early 1860's, Squier once again returned to journalism, this time as an editor for a publishing firm owned by Frank Leslie (1821-1880). A few years later, he was appointed United States Commissioner to Peru between 1863 and 1865, after which he wrote his last major publication, Peru: Incidents of Travel and Exploration in the Land of the Incas (1877). In 1868, he was appointed Consul-General of Honduras. This was his last diplomatic appointment.
In 1873, Squier and his wife, Miriam Florence Follin (1828-1914), divorced. Shortly thereafter, he began to show signs of mental deterioration and was committed to an asylum before eventually becoming the ward of his brother Frank. He died in 1888. Although his anthropological pursuits ceased during the latter part of his life, Squier is nonetheless remembered as a passionate intellectual who attempted to answer theoretical questions about human behavior and the nature of the organization of societies. Above all, he sought to understand trans-historical and cross-cultural similarities between ancient societies, which has earned him a prominent place as one of the forerunners of modern anthropology.
From the guide to the Ephraim George Squier papers, Squier, Ephriam George, 1818-1886, 1861-1886, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
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Subjects:
- Religion
- Albumen prints
- American Assoc. For The Advancement Of Science (+ Aagn Etc.)
- American Journal Of Science (Silliman's)
- Americans On Europe
- Anthropology
- Anthropology
- Anthropology
- Applications for positions
- Archaeologists
- Archaeologists
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Architecture
- Aztecs
- Blacks
- Canals, Interoceanic
- Canals, Interoceanic
- Congress
- Contracts, Maritime
- Contracts, Maritime
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Diplomatic and consular service, Nicaraguan
- Diplomats
- District of columbia
- Draft
- El Salvador
- Ethnology
- Ethnology
- Ethnology Archaeology Anthropology
- Excavations (Archaeology)
- False imprisonment
- False imprisonment
- Guano industry
- Guano industry
- Henry Family
- Henry, Joseph, Personality, Etc
- Hieroglyphics
- Incas
- Incas
- Indian architecture
- Indian art
- Indians
- Indians
- Indians of Central America
- Indians of Central America
- Indians of Central America
- Indians of North America
- Indians of North America
- Indians of North America
- Indians of North America
- Indians of South America
- International law
- International law
- Journalism
- Lectures, Popular
- Lenca Indians
- Lenca language
- Manuscripts
- Manuscripts, American
- Meteorology
- Mound builders
- National Museum
- Nicaragua
- Patent Office
- Peru
- Photography
- Physical geography
- President Of United States
- Princeton (College Of New Jersey)
- Railroads
- Railroads
- Recommendations For Positions
- Science In America
- Scientific organizations
- Scientific publications
- Seat of the Inca (Peru)
- Seizure of vessels and cargoes
- Seizure of vessels and cargoes
- Signatures (Writing)
- Smithsonian Board Of Regents
- Smithsonian Building
- Smithsonian Exchange
- Smithsonian Institution
- Smithsonian Library
- Smithsonian Publications
- Smithsonian Weather Service
- Squier, E. G. (Ephraim George), 1821-1888
- Surveying
- Surveys And Explorations, General
- Toltecs
- University of Pennsylvania
- Watercolors, American
- Anthropology
- Anthropology
- Archaeologists
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Archaeology
- Canals, Interoceanic
- Contracts, Maritime
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, American
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Diplomatic and consular service, Honduran
- Ethnology
- False imprisonment
- Guano industry
- Incas
- Indians
- Indians of Central America
- Indians of Central America
- Indians of North America
- Indians of North America
- Indians of North America
- International law
- Railroads
- Seizure of vessels and cargoes
Occupations:
- Archaeologists
- Businessmen
- Diplomats
Places:
- Societies, etc.--United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Sacsahuaman (Peru) (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Ohio (as recorded)
- Ohio (as recorded)
- Washington (D.C.) (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- North America (as recorded)
- Nicaragua Canal (Nicaragua) (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- New York (State) (as recorded)
- Peru--Sacsahuaman (as recorded)
- Mississippi River Valley (as recorded)
- Mississippi River Valley (as recorded)
- Great Britain (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Nicaragua (as recorded)
- Nicaragua (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- San Juan (Puerto Rico) (as recorded)
- El Salvador (as recorded)
- El Salvador (as recorded)
- Islas de la Bahía (Honduras) (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Ohio (as recorded)
- New York (State)--New York (as recorded)
- New York (State)--New York (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- Peru--Ollantaytambo (as recorded)
- Guatemala (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Ollantaytambo (Peru) (as recorded)
- Pacific Ocean (as recorded)
- Chillicothe (Ross County, Ohio) (as recorded)
- New York (State)--Buffalo (as recorded)
- Mexico (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- Mississippi River Valley (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- Latin America (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Nicaragua (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Ohio (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- Central America (as recorded)
- New York (State)--New York (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- Peru (as recorded)
- United States (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
- El Salvador (as recorded)
- Honduras (as recorded)
